wildlife & beaches

We are currently trying to organize our next holidays… however we apparently can’t make up our mind.
We’ll be travelling with 2 children (8 & 10 yo). They are fascinated by wildlife so we would like to see some wildlife. Anyone any suggestions? Madagascar (appears to be not neasy to travel through)? Malaysia ( need to combine mainland with Borneo)? …?

I’d suggest that Kenya is perfect for what you want – I went last year and discovered it has best of both worlds.

There’s plenty of wildlife (big cats, elephants, giraffes etc) to be seen in the national parks (Mara, Nakuru, Amboseli etc) and the beaches on the coast are incredible (the snorkelling is awesome too so even more wildlife there).

Travel around Kenya is so easy and there are plenty of safari tour operators that will run tailored trips for you and the kids. The first class train ride from Nairobi to Mombasa was great fun too so that might be a fun one for the kids – you go through a couple of parks so can see wildlife strolling near the tracks if you’re lucky.

However, I would personally recommend SE Asia. Your own suggestions of Malaysia and Borneo are a great choice, not only are they fantastic for seeing wildlife (Semmengoh Orang Utan (as well as other mammals, birds and reptiles) rehab centre near Kuching, trekking through one of the oldest and most pristine rainforests in the world at Taman Negara for example) but they are both very easy to travel through with children with great infastructure and plenty of other things to keep them entertained (hop over to Singapore for example for Singapore Zoo and Universal studios on Sentosa island, etc).

Have a look here for some inspiration and tips on Malaysia, Borneo and Singapore.

Malaysia is a good choice. It has a vast ecological system and it is easy to travel. You can take the occasional side trips to get your kids off wildlife and pull them right back in.
You would not have to travel to Borneo to see the Orang Utans as there is one location in the Peninsula that brings a few of them (currently they have more that 20) from Borneo for population growth. They have been successful and have reintroduced quite a number of them back in to the wild – Sarawak, Borneo.
We also have the oldest rainforest in the world – Taman Negara (National Park) which covers three states in the Peninsula. You could opt for a 3days/2nights or 4days/3nights package. They have jungle trekking, canopy walkway, waterfalls, aboriginal settlement, night jungle trekking and caving.
After which, you could take a drive from Taman Negara to Cameron Highlands where you would be greeted with the cool fresh air of the highlands.
Cameron Highlands was discovered by a Scots : William Cameron, as a place where the British could look into plantation purposes. So, its no surprise to visit vegetable farms, strawberry farms, rose gardens and tea plantations. You could also do jungle trekking up it the highlands. Drive up to the highest point accessible by road in the Peninsula – Brinchang Mountain.

There are tons of nature to explore in Malaysia. Malaysia will be on showcase next year as it is the official “Visit Malaysia 2014″ year.

I don’t know if I am on the right thread. But I can’t find a way to submit a question as it is giving me a dead link after hitting on the “submit a question” tab.

I am dreaming on have a trip to Serengeti, Africa. Do anyone of you know if it is safe? How many days should I take the trip? Any vaccines that I should take before going there and I’d like to know how much is the estimated cost per day there?

Hi TravelChick – sorry to hear the link isn’t working for you. Can you let me know if this is still happening or if you can submit your question now? If you’re still having trouble, I will submit your question myself and you can follow the thread by clicking the “Track this topic” button just below the question.